Soccer: Postecoglou seeking Cup response

Having suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace in the early hours of Monday morning, Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou will demand a response from his players when they host Manchester City in EFL Cup on Thursday.

Palace had not won a single Premier League game until their victory over Spurs, with Eagles striker Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring the decisive goal just after the half-hour mark.

In truth, Palace should have really won by more at Selhurst Park and now Postecoglou’s men face a tough cup game on Thursday morning, with Premier League champions City heading to north London.

. What: Tottenham v Man City
. Where: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
. When: 06:15 Thursday 31st October
. How to watch: beIN SPORTS
. Odds: Tottenham 3.00, Draw 3.50, Man City 2.25

Postecoglou wants Spurs to battle

Postecoglou was understandably frustrated after the full-time whistle at Selhurst Park and was disappointed that his side failed to win many of their individual battles against a Palace side that created the better chances over the 90 minutes.

"It was one of those games with a lot of stoppages and battles, and they ended up winning a lot of them and coming out on top,” Postecoglou said.

"There was a lot of disruption and it was hard to get any fluency. They did better than us.

"It turned into a game they were thriving on and we should have dealt with it better. It was a poor goal to concede. It had nothing to do with playing out from the back, that can happen.”

Spurs must win more of those one-on-one battles if they are to overcome a City side that moved to the top of the Premier League table over the weekend thanks to a 1-0 win over Southampton.

The Lilywhites will know they need to create more in the final third, while they really looked to miss skipper Heung-Min Son in the defeat at Palace.

Son could potentially return for Thursday’s game against City and the South Korean star is 2.75 in the anytime goalscorer market to find the back of the net, while Spurs are 3.00 to win in the 90 minutes.

City keep finding a way

While City have had to cope with injuries to the likes of Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne and Oscar Bobb, Pep Guardiola’s side continue to find ways to grind out wins.

The Citizens are undefeated in all competitions this season and Erling Haaland’s goal against Southampton took the reigning Premier League champions back to the summit of the ladder.

Having edged past Championship Watford in the last round of the EFL Cup, Guardiola will know his side are in for a tough battle when they head to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this week.

City went five games in a row without evening scoring away at Tottenham, before picking up two wins their last season in the FA Cup and Premier League.

The Citizens are 2.25 to come away with the win in 90 minutes, while they are 5.00 to win to nil for a third time in a row at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.